


if we were normal

by svladcjelli



Series: solidarity forever (Pride 2014 AU) [1]
Category: 1917 (Movie 2019)
Genre: 80s AU, Getting Together, Internalized Homophobia, M/M, and now here we are, but like not really, i kept getting encouraged by the 2nd, its a pride (2014) au, lesbian lauri lesbian lauri lesbian l
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:53:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24096880
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/svladcjelli/pseuds/svladcjelli
Summary: It's 1984 and Will studying as a pastry chef in London while Tom lives in a small mining community in Wales. They meet through a common interest.(Alternately, the Pride (2014) AU that accidentally happened)
Relationships: Private Cooke/Private Rossi (1917), Private Parry/Private Atkins(1917), Tom Blake & William Schofield, Tom Blake/William Schofield
Series: solidarity forever (Pride 2014 AU) [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1744264
Comments: 12
Kudos: 45





	1. if you could call it living

**Author's Note:**

> hello again!!!!!! basiacally, pride is one of my favourite films right now and something just,, happened in my brain. no other explanation, really, but i hope you like it nonetheless!!!

The miners. They were all over the news recently and while William Schofield wasn't politically up to speed on nearly anything, there was no way to avoid the constant talk of what people saw or read in the Mail. 

Will didn't live a very exciting life. He lived alone in a small London flat and attended culinary school to become a pastry chef. Being a twenty-three year old student didn't bring on many adventures, but Will preferred it that way. A quiet life alone was ideal for him, and he intended to keep it that way. 

Intended. 

There was a bookshop just down the street, but not an ordinary bookshop. "Gay's the Word" he heard from mouths of malice- whatever he'd heard of it, they were never good things. He knew the way gay people were treated outside of their own communities and it took everything in him not to take it to heart.

Because that was the thing about Will. He was gay. 

Will knew the bookshop quite well- they led marches and held fundraisers, all to which Will tried to avoid. The owners of the bookshop were Cooke and Rossi, a couple who seemed to have experience with nearly everything. Coincidentally, they were also neighbours of Will who had a knack for throwing huge parties. 

Will didn't know the couple personally until he stumbled into the pride parade that afternoon and bumped into Cooke who so graciously made Will hold the other end of the banner. It was nerve-wracking for him, to be so visible, but something about it made Will feel at home. Before he could get comfortable, there was a change in plans and the end of the banner he was holding was replaced by a bucket that read "LGSM" on the front. "Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners," he deducted, from everyone shouting it. Eventually, he joined in too. 

Now, he was at one of Cooke and Rossi's said parties and he never felt more awkward. He made his way through the crowd to a corner of the stairwell and slid down the wall, finally finding room to breathe. He sighed. 

"Your first time? Never seen you here." Someone had said with a heavy French accent but her voice had sounded warm and kind nonetheless. 

Fuck, was someone talking to him? He look to his right, then up from his spot on the floor to make eye contact with the owner of the voice. She wore overalls that were cuffed at the ankles with a white sweater underneath but the first thing he noticed about her was how pretty she looked. 

"Um, yes. I mean that- it is my first time here and.. I've never met a lesbian before." 

She only giggled at that. 

"Call me Lauri. Your name?"

"Oh, um, Schofield- or just Will." 

"Scho, then." She smiled again. There was something in her that reminded Will of his sister. He chuckled softly under his breath,

"Yeah, Scho then." 

He hoped they could be friends, God knew he needed more of those. He didn't always live alone- he planned to move out after university but he came out to his sister over many glasses of wine. She had taken the information as any good sister would- with compassion and understanding- assuring him that she would love him no matter who he was. For the next couple weeks he lived at the house while trying to find a flat in the city, but found himself holed up in his room trying to muffle the sobs that wouldn't stop escaping him no matter how hard he tried. He convinced himself his sister was only saying that with no meaning behind the words, that she couldn't possible love someone like him. 

And so he moved out. 

It was the most difficult decision he made in his life and his sister's protests didn't make it any easier, but Will decided it was ultimately for the better (as he told himself.) 

"They've counted it!" Someone- Atkins, he'd soon learn- yelled, swinging around the corner. 

Lauri grabbed Will's hand, pulling him off the floor, 

"Wait- What? Where are we-" 

"Come!" 

She dragged him along with the rest of the group who were heading down the stairs, pushing through the rest of the crowd much to Will's dismay. They went down to Gay's the Word, everyone crowding shoulder-to-shoulder in the too-small bookshop. There was clamorous chatter throughout the bookshop, everyone whispering to each other about estimates and numbers. 

Cooke placed his hands on the counter top, readying to hoist himself to stand while Rossi, who was holding a clipboard, tried reasoning with him not to. 

"Charlie, you're gonna fucking fall like last time-" 

Cooke did it anyway- albeit a bit shakily- clapping his hands to gain everyone's attention. 

"Alright, 'ya wankers! Pipe down an' listen, we had it good today! Not many of us ended up in hospital yet, yeah?"

There were scattered half-laughs and mutters throughout the room, no one seemed to find the joke too amusing except for himself. Rossi only sighed. 

"We're not gettin' so much of the police brutality anymore, ain't it funny? Copper's 'ave moved on, it seems, but y'know who they've moved on to?" 

He reached for a newspaper in his back pocket, one that read 'POLICE CLASH WITH MINERS AGAIN!' in large, bold text. 

"While we're 'ere missin' the brunt of it, there are miners out there gettin' the same treatment we normally get! Bullied and beaten, I'm sayin'. It ain't right or fair, we should know that best." 

Will knew what Cooke was going to say, they all did. 

"The hell are you on about? We're fending for our own, here." Parry spoke from the back of the shop, hand intertwined with Atkins'. 

"They need our donations, our money. Families are out there starvin' to death, it's all goin' to shit there!" Rossi had a feeling he'd have to step in soon. 

"Why would we help them? They'll do nothing but kick out heads in!" 

"Because they fuckin' need our help and-" 

"Okay, okay!" Rossi interrupted before anything could get out of hand, "Let's focus on the positive here, yeah? We raised nearly two-hundred quid today alone." 

"And we could raise more if we tried. All we're askin' is to engage and we could form a union with 'em, yeah?" Cooke continued, "We're plannin' to meet here once a week. We've even got a name, see, LGSM- Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners." He took a breath. "Right boys, who's in?" 

For whatever reason, Will stayed. Even when over half of the crowed walked out of the bookshop, Will stayed through it all. Maybe, and just maybe, he stayed because he found a place where he could finally be himself. 

Cooke hopped down from the counter, grimacing while he did so. Atkins had indistinctly whispered something to Parry and shockingly enough, the pair stayed. There were a total of nine people remaining to Cooke's annoyance. 

"Fuck, nine? Is that all? This is gonna be harder than I thought." 

Rossi began holding out the clipboard for the remaining people to sign while Lauri glanced at Will. 

"Coming?" 

"Well, I'm trying to wrap up university so I'm not sure if-" 

Cooke looked directly at Will. 

"What's your name, huh?" 

"Uh, William Schofield. Or just Will, I guess." 

"Alright Just Will, you in or not?" 

Rossi held the clipboard out for him to sign. Will paused before giving in, there were always a million reasons not to do something. He gave in eventually, signing 'Will' under the previous names. 

"Right choice, lad! We got miners to feed." 

And to the west of London and just a bit south was the small town of Onllwyn, Wales. It was a tight-knit community and within it lived Tom Blake. He moved from London to Wales after coming out as gay to his mother and brother, Joe. It wasn't because they had an adverse reaction, he and Joe had began to fear for Tom's safety as they heard more stories about the violence towards gays in London. Joe had a friend in Onllwyn- Leslie, he vaguely remembered- who helped him place a job working as a miner for a year until he was laid off for medical concern. There was too much coal dust in his lungs, the doctors had told him. Since then, he continued to live in Onllwyn on welfare with his dog Myrtle, all under a guise that he was straight. Though it wasn't entirely honest, it was a peaceful way of living. 

Or rather, it was until the strikes begun. Since then, it became harder everyday to afford basic necessities like food. Myrtle was pregnant with a litter of puppies and Tom was scared he would have to give them away, simply because of the lack of resources. 

It was a scary time for everyone involved. 

A couple weeks and several rejections later, they got a spokesperson from Onllwyn coming to London. The big mining cities rejected all LGSM donations, not wanting to taint their name further by being associated with gays. The spokesperson was Ellis Leslie, as Cooke explained, and he had been sent over as a form of appreciation. 

As much of a bastard Leslie was, he made a good speech. It took a lot for a straight man to walk onto the stage of a gay bar and give a speech of gratitude, but he pulled it off better than anyone could imagine. Cooke got into petty arguments with him nearly everyday he stayed in London, but he would be the first to admit that the group would be lost without Leslie.   
  


Back in Onllwyn, a debate was being held. It was to decide if LGSM should be allowed to visit Onllwyn to show the community's appreciation for the money raised. Though many voted yes, there was still significant push-back from those who believed gay people to be abhorrent. It was a tie and the last person to vote was Tom, the verdict relying completely on him. 

Tom, a bit nervously, raised his hand. 

"I think it's a great idea." 

"I really don't think I should go with you guys, it's- I'd be taking time off of uni and that'd be-" 

"Come on, 'ya bellend! You're important to our team, where'd the W be in LGSM without 'ya, Just Will? Wait, fuck, that don't make sense.." 

_You're important._

Those were two words that echoed in Will's head for a moment. _He was important._

"-I mean that like, okay, W isn't in LGSM but it's still somewhere in the alphabet, I think and..." 

"I'll do it. I'll come with you." 

"What?" 

"I'll come with you. I've always wanted to see Wales anyways." 

Cooke smiled, shaking Will's hand. 

"Great! I'll tell Rossi then. Took 'ya long enough to decide." 

Before he knew it, they had loaded up in a van and were well on their way to Onllwyn. Putting a group of gays in a van was never a good idea as there was far too much singing and not a minute of silence. In the van, there was Will, Lauri, Cooke, Rossi, Butler, Jondalar, Malky, Parry, and Atkins. To say it was full would be an understatement. 

Lauri softly chatted with Will the whole way, talking about the baby she and her girlfriend were raising. It was nice to have friends, although over time, they became more than friends- a family, Will thought. 

"Right fellas, we're here." Rossi called from the drivers seat. Everyone peered out the windows, seeing the gloomy town. Maybe it was a bit too much to even call it a town, it was so small it could be considered a village. Will could feel the unease pour dribble out of everyone near-instantly, they all understood what happens to people like them in this sort of _village._

"I don't think people.. like us." Lauri spoke with melancholy in her voice but Cooke wouldn't stand for it. 

"Head up, lads! They were the ones who invited us, yeah? We promised to be here. It's too late to turn back now, innit." 

Jondalar sighed. 

"For the first time in his life, Cooke is right. We have to follow through." 

They all understood what it meant when Jondalar agreed with Cooke so one by one, they unloaded out of the van and into the Onllwyn Miners Welfare Hall. Leslie was right there to meet them, pulling the group into the kitchen. There they were met with Erinmore, Mackenzie, and Smith. 

"What we're gonna do right, we're gonna kick the band off for a second and have one of you get up onto that stage and tell us who you are. Or whatever other details you have to offer, I don't give a shit, just don't fuck it up." 

They weren't prepared to hear that, no one had prepared a speech and much less a speaker. Through some scrambling and minimal arguing, Rossi was decided to be the speaker (though to Cooke's disagreement.) 

Like Leslie said, the band was knocked off the stage and in they pushed Rossi while the rest stood to the side of the stage.

"Thank you everyone for bein' here." Rossi started, nervous and unprepared, "We raised this money for you lot. And we'll continue to do what we can for as long as you want us to, 'cos we can understand what you're goin' through. And um, well, we're just.. We'll just keep trying for you. That's all, uh, thank you." 

There was scattered claps echoing throughout the building. The speech was terrible, but they couldn't blame Rossi for it as anyone would struggle with unpredictable public speaking in front of a crowd that probably wants to bash your head in. Admittedly, Will didn't hear any of Rossi's speech. Instead, he was emptily gazing at the pretty boy in the crowd with brown hair and soft features. 

They were staying at Leslie's house that night, all of them. Leslie led them down the road and into his house where he threw a couple sleeping bags down the stairs and turned off the lights and no one heard from him for the rest of the night. Will couldn't get his mind off of the boy in the audience that evening. 

The next morning, Erinmore took the group to see a Welsh castle. From the high peak, they watched cop cars roll into town. 

"Heard they got some of our miners locked up, rotten bastards." Smith spat. 

Butler looked at Smith knowingly. 

"They can't do that." He paused, "As in, it's illegal. They can't do that. It goes against police brutality laws to hold someone captive under no pretense." 

"What?" 

Jondalar nodded, "They have to charge him for his arrest within forty-eight hours and if, and that's a large if, they have reason to hold him. " 

The moment Jondalar spoke, Smith was already on his way to the police office.

An hour later, thanks to Jondalar and Butler, two miners walked free from the station. 

It was their second day at the Welfare Hall and the moment they walked through the doors, a deafening silence overtook the room. Leslie leaded them to the table to put their boxes of donations down while Erinmore explained to a miner, one of the two they freed, that if it weren't for them, he would still be in holding. 

"It's you, isn't it? The gays?" 

Cooke was the one to step forward. 

"Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, yeah. I'm Charles Cooke." 

"Arthur Kilgour. Have a pint with me, will you?"

"Who am I to pass up a pint?" 

Kilgour and Cooke shook hands, marking the start of something great. 

Later in the night, the hall was filled with chatter and along the walls of the welfare hall echoed _'karma, karma, karma, karma, karma chameleon!'_

From the sidelines stood Cooke and Baumer, both with a pint in hand. Friedrich Baumer was an immigrant who came to Wales in search for a better life than rural Germany and successfully found work in the mines. Thus, his English wasn't perfect and seemed to stumble over his words and in some ways, Cooke could feel for him. He didn't seem to fit-in too well in Onllwyn - neither of them did. 

" _Karma Chameleon_ is playin' and yet there are what, three lads on the dance floor? The fuck is up with that?" 

"The men- they don't.. ah..." 

"Dance?"

"Dance!" 

"Jesus, that's bland! Gimme a moment, will you?" 

He didn't give Baumer a time to reply before skipping up the steps of stage, murmuring a request to the DJ. As he jumped down the stairs, the crowd's attention was caught by the sudden pause and change of music. 

_Oh, I feel somethin' baby and I want you to know about it, see, I want you to feel it too, so just listen to me baby._

Gazes adverting to Cooke who danced a few feet from the stage, limbs moving with practiced ease. 

_Can't stop me now, hear what I say! My feet want to move, so get outta my way! I'm gonna have my say-_

There was a dance-circle forming around Cooke- Baumer among them, watching with awe. From the side, Rossi rolled his eyes. Cooke continued to dance in the middle of the circle, pouring his heart into every movement.

_I'm going to my discotheque, I'm gonna dance-dance-dance ooh, 'till the break of day!_

He grabbed Hepburn's hands first, pulling him in to dance. Hepburn smiled until his jaw hurt, laughs escaping him as he boogied with Cooke. Timed claps sounded throughout the hall, haughty laughs and cheers erupting from everyone on the dance floor who were watching Cooke's display.

_Shame, shame, shame, hey, shame on you! If you can't dance too!_

He pointed around the room, keeping his rhythm up. Next, he spun Tom Blake into a dip where he couldn't seem to stop his giggles. He did the same with Baumer who had the largest grin plastered to his face and Cooke felt a sense of accomplishment well inside him. 

_I said 'shame, shame, shame, shame, shame! Shame on you! If you can't dance too!'_

The circle erupted, the miners of Onllwyn dancing on their own alongside Cooke. Their focus was still on Cooke who hadn't stopped moving for a minute, like this was his most comfortable form- in the spotlight, dancing among newfound friends. 

_Don't stop the motion if you get the notion, you can't stop the groove 'cause you just won't move!_

Like Rossi, Will watched from the sidelines but with awe instead. He had never seen Cooke look so in his element like that, moving with such ease. Jon sighed, resting a hand on Will's shoulder. "He does this at every opportunity the lad's got." 

_Got my sunroof down, got my diamonds in the back. Put on your shaky wig woman, if you do I ain't comin' back!_

Cooke jumped one of the long tables of the welfare hall, men cleared their pints out of the way to make room for him.

_Shame, shame, shame, hey, shame on you! If you can't dance too!_

Coordinated feet thudded on the table in time with the beat of the music, the crowd of the hall roared with cheer. Cooke threw his hands in the air in a dramatic display of excitement while his hips shook with rhythm. He reached the end of the table, he ran a single hand through his hair.

_I said 'shame, shame, shame, shame, shame! Shame on you! If you can't dance too!'_

"God, I miss disco!" 

The donation event went well into the night, the two communities finding more in common than expected. Will was told he was to sleep in a certain 'Tom Blake's' house that night by Cooke who generously told Will that Tom was single but straight and instructed directly not to develop feelings for the man. Frankly, Will was offended that Cooke would think of him as someone who just fell for everyone he met. 

It wasn't until he met Tom that he realized Cooke's instruction could be a problem. 

Tom happened to be the same boy he gazed longingly at for the entirety of Rossi's speech. 

On their walk from the Welfare Hall to Tom's small home, they talked about things like the way Tom didn't grow up in Wales or Tom's dog, Myrtle. Will found himself enjoying Tom's voice and nonsensical rambles.

When they got to Tom's house, Myrtle was quick to greet Will. 

"She's gonna have puppies soon. Within the next couple weeks, I reckon." 

Will smiled. 

"She's lovely." 

Despite the time, Tom made Will a cup of tea and the pair talked through the early hours of the morning. About themselves, about the town, it didn't matter- it felt like they had been friends for years instead of half a day. It was at four in the morning when they started getting a bit too drowsy for coherent conversation, so Will moved to his makeshift bed on the couch while Tom headed upstairs. 

"'Night, Will." Tom called from the stairs, smiling. 

"Goodnight, Tom." Will said from his spot on the couch, but they could still see each other. 

And they stared at each other longer than housemates-for-a-day normally do before Tom scurried upstairs. 

Will couldn't stop thinking about Tom's smile. 

Will yawned for the tenth time that morning while they were loading the van back up. Cooke laughed,

"Jesus, what'd 'ya do? Did you shag that Blake fella? I fuckin' told you not to-" 

"No! We just talked, 's all." 

Cooke stared at Will. 

"Oh my God, you did more than that, didn't you? You fell for him. You totally fell for him, yeah?" 

"What? No, of course not! I swear Cooke, he's just a nice bloke." 

Of course, no one believed Will. 

He really didn't like Tom like that, though. They just got on well, his dog was nice, and on top of it all, Tom was straight. They were only friends. 

'Just friends.' he repeated to himself. 

His first day back in London, he found himself thinking about Tom more than he should. His giggle, his smile, the colour of his eyes- 

Shit.

He was in love with Tom Blake. 


	2. ruled by the vibe im bringing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maybe things aren't so bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for waiting and sticking around! this has turned out to be pretty fun to write!! :)

Tom couldn't stop thinking about Will. 

Everyday he found himself thinking of the way they stared at each other before heading to bed and that longing gaze Will held whenever Tom was talking. 

They were just friends. Though Tom wasn't straight, he wasn't about to ruin everything he had in Wales just to chase after someone who probably didn't like him back. He _couldn't._

Tom was well-loved by nearly everyone he met- all the women in Onllwyn nearly adopted him as their son the first week he had arrived- leaving him with a feeling of safety and comfort he couldn't risk. Mackenzie was notorious for being old-fashioned as people would say, but Tom preferred the term 'xenophobic.' 

Mackenzie was the only person who had opposed Tom's choice to move to Onllwyn, claiming that a Londoner had no place in a small Welsh community. Of course, the rest of the community accepted Tom with open arms (especially with having a connection with Leslie through Joe) but he could still feel Mackenzie's annoyance. 

Conceivably, Mackenzie wasn't happy when he heard of LGSM's continuous support. "Perverts. All of them." Tom had heard him say during a donation event just before walking out, clearly disgusted enough to find being in the same room as them intolerable. 

It was when Mackenzie went to the press that he had crossed a line. 

He had informed a tabloid about the miners of Onllwyn being supported by LGSM, ultimately giving the National Union of Miner's a worse representation than they already had.

Back in London, Cooke threw down a newspaper on the counter of "Gay's the Word." All of them had seen the news, the way the press had slandered the National Union of Miners. It was humiliating to see all their hard work collapse over the span of a couple days. 

Cooke placed his hands on the counter to hoist himself up again as it seemed his to be his favourite spot to make announcements. When Will asked why, Jondalar tutted and said he liked to feel tall. 

"Right, boys!" Cooke glanced at Lauri, "And Lauri. As you 'eard, our miner friends ain't doing well and they need our support more than ever. That's why, drum-roll please!" 

The room was silent. 

"Alright, thanks for that then. We're going to hold a massive fundraiser. Not just any fundraiser, no, it's gonna be held at the fuckin' Electric Ballroom! It's great, innit? Two weeks 'till then!" 

This was larger than anyone had expected.

Lauri was the first to speak up."Who?" 

Parry nodded, "She's right. A big venue's great, but who're we gonna get on stage? Without a good main act we-" 

"Say no more, Parry! With some help from my darling Rossi here, we got none other than Bronski fuckin' Beat headlinin' the whole thing! It's gonna be open to the public and all the money's gonna go to our friends in Onllwyn."

Cooke hopped down from the counter. 

The nine immediately rejoiced, Parry and Atkins sharing a celebratory kiss. 

Will had never been more proud to be a member of LGSM. 

Two weeks and a lot of preparation later, the "Pits and Perverts" music festival was finally happening. Miners from Onllwyn gathered to the concert, all of which included Tom. 

_Tom._

Will was holding a box of t-shirts when he spotted him in the empty venue, dropping nearly everything he had to sprint over to Tom. He whipped his head around to spot Will, a grin spreading ear to ear. 

"Will!" 

Will couldn't stop the giddy feeling that overtook him. 

"Tom! I thought I wouldn't see you again." 

"Me neither, mate. C'mon then, how've you been?" 

They talked until Will was pulled away by Malky to finish setting up. He was the happiest he's been in months just from hearing Tom's voice. Later that evening, Will and Tom stood together in the crowd. They stood shoulder to shoulder in the dim lit venue, music blaring as Tom stared at Will. 

They couldn't hear anything over the music if they wanted to talk. Instead of using words, Tom grabbed Will by the collar of his shirt and pulled him down to kiss him firmly on the lips. Will didn't know what to do except kiss Tom back. 

They knew it was wrong. If any of the miners saw, Tom knew what would happen to him. 

So Tom pulled away from Will abruptly. 

"I'm sorry." 

He scurried out of the venue, worming his way through the crowd and to the exit. Will followed behind him the best he could, mumbling apologies to the people he bumped into along the way. 

"Tom, wait-" 

"No, Will. I don't know what came over me." 

"It's okay. I've been thinking about doing that for a while, and I-" 

"You don't understand, I don't like you like that. I'm straight, Will, I won't ever like you like that." 

It felt like Will had been stabbed. 

"I'm sorry."

And just like that, Tom walked away. It felt like everything had slipped past Will within mere minutes and there was nothing he could do about it. 

At least the concert did well, he was told. They raised thousands of pounds for the miners, to Cooke's enthusiasm. 

Unfortunately, not everything was going well. Will had gotten evicted from his flat, rendering him homeless until Lauri had uncovered his living situation. She immediately insisted Will stayed with her and the baby- Emilie- until he could find a new flat.

 _"You're family,"_ she had said. 

_He's family._

Lauri's girlfriend had stayed in France to study and was coming back sometime during the summer so until then, it was just Emilie, Lauri, and Will. Emilie had taken a shine to Will and he recited poems to her. Emilie's favourite, he found, was "The Jumblies" by Edward Lear. 

Among bonding with Emilie, Will had put all his effort into graduating culinary school and finally got past his third term. All was well except for the constant thoughts of Tom Blake. 

Everyday, Will would think about Tom. He would wonder if he was okay, how life was in Wales, and most importantly- if he was still mad at Will. 

In Onllwyn, Tom was doing the exact same. Myrtle had her puppies and it was one of the proudest days of Tom's life but it felt like something was missing. He felt bad for telling off Will the way he did at the concert and whatever he tried, he couldn't get his mind off it. 

It was March of 1985 when the miners' strike came to a close. LGSM was headed back to Wales to show their support, their commitment to solidarity. 

Will couldn't be more nervous. He had told Lauri everything that had happened at the concert over a pint where he got a bit over-emotional. 

Looking past his anxiety, he was eager to see Tom. Wishfully thinking, maybe Will had a chance to clear things up with him. So, with a bit of push from Lauri and Cooke, they went to Onllwyn. 

Leslie told Tom the news. That LGSM were coming back to Wales, that he should "talk to the tall fucker he got on so well with." Something dropped in Tom's stomach, but it was inherently bad. He could finally apologise, say that he wanted to be friends with Will and put everything behind him. 

It would be okay. 

When Tom saw the van drive into Onllwyn, he was one of the first to greet them. While Leslie talked to (and thanked, but in a very Leslie manner) Cooke, Tom greeted Will. In the few times Will had met Tom, Will had never felt smaller. 

Will went first. 

"So-"

"So- Shit, sorry. You first." 

"No, no, by all means, you go 'head." 

"Firstly, I wanna say I'm sorry. It wasn't right of me to, like, snap at you or nothin' and it's my fault-"

"It's my fault too, don't worry. It's alright by me." 

There was a pause. Will laughed, but it was full of relief. 

"It's silly, but I thought you hated me." 

Tom gave a small giggle, something that sent Will's heart thumping. 

"Me? Hate you? God, I could never." 

There was something left unsaid between them, they knew. Tom was holding something back and it was so apparent to Will that it took everything in him not press the matter. 

They smiled at each other with that same longing-gaze they so often did. Cooke slapped Will on the back, signalling for them to head back. 

"Alright Just Will, on we head. Say bye to your boy-toy now, will 'ya?" 

Will blushed nearly as much as Tom. 

"Bye then, Will." 

"Um, see you." 

Months passed and there wasn't a day where Tom didn't think about Will and Will didn't think about Tom. Will graduated university and finally got his own flat, thanking Lauri profusely for letting him stay for so long. They talked nearly everyday and amount of time Will spent with Emilie promoted him to "Uncle Will." 

It was June 29th, the day of London's gay pride parade in which LGSM would lead. It was sometime in the afternoon where he and Rossi were holding separate ends of the banner they had designed weeks beforehand. In a turn of events, the miners from Onllwyn came to support them. A token of gratitude for everything they did, Leslie said (with only minimal sarcasm in his voice.)

Among the crowd and shouting, Will heard his name being yelled by a voice he took a minute to recongise. After a few months, it only took a minute. 

_Tom._

He shoved his end of the banner into Cooke's hands, much to his annoyance. 

"Hey, wank-stain! Where're you off to? We got a march to lead!" 

"I'm sorry, I’ve got to do something- It's, um, it's urgent! Just one second, Cooke, I swear!" 

He heard Cooke groan just before he ran off. He searched frantically for Tom within the bustling streets before bumping directly into someone a tad shorter than him. 

"Ah, I'm so sorry- _Tom?"_

Tom looked up.

"Will! Finally, fuck." 

Will took a good look at him. He hadn't changed much, but the small pin on his overcoat caught Will's eye. 

_'I am (discretely) gay.'_ It read. 

Tom looked at him, smiling. 

"I think I love you!" 

Will couldn't hear a word Tom said over the roaring of the crowd. 

"What?!" 

Tom cleared his throat. 

"I think I love you!!" He shouted, louder that time. 

Something grew in Will's chest. 

"Good! I think I love you too!" 

And right there, on the crowded street of June 29th, Will leaned down and kissed Tom. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> adn thats the end of that, folks!!!! depending on how this done, might make a sequel where tom n will (plus myrtle) just live peacefully together. who knows! and as always, thank you SO much for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> oh dear. what have i done.  
> next chapter should be up soon! special thanks to the fellas from the 2nd always encouraging me to go along with this. this is the first kind of big project i took on and honstly i am Very nervous ahha. and as always, big huge thanks for reading!!!!!


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